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The United States is preparing a new package of sanctions against Russia

10.08.2018

The United States is preparing a new package of sanctions related to the poisoning of British intelligence agent Sergei Skripal, in which they accuse Russia. Under threat of export of American gas turbine engines and flights of Aeroflot in the United States.

Since the poisoning of Sergei Skripal and his daughter passed almost six months. The lack of any evidence from Britain, which hanged the blame for the Khimatka on the Kremlin, minimized the interest in provocation. But after doubling the pressure on Russia, the US authorities decided to update the topic after the summit in Helsinki.

Ultimatum

Yesterday, State Department spokesman Heather Nauert announced the preparation of new anti-Russian sanctions, which should enter into force on August 22. They will limit the supply to Russia of technologies and industrial equipment from the US, such as electronics, calibration equipment and gas turbine engines. It's about US exports worth several hundred million dollars. Dual-use items used in astronautics, aviation and energy can also be affected by sanctions.

Washington gives Russia a "chance", an equivalent ultimatum. Moscow is given 90 days to allow UN inspectors to check whether Russia has chemical and biological weapons. If the conditions are not met, the US will lower the level of diplomatic relations and limit the flights of Russian state-owned airlines, in particular, Aeroflot.

The requirements are as absurd as the penalties for their failure. First, Russia has already destroyed all the stocks of prohibited weapons, as confirmed by the experts of the OPCW, but the US has not done so yet. Secondly, diplomatic relations between countries are already at the level "below the baseboard" after the US expelled about 60 Russian diplomats, conducted searches in diplomatic representations of Russia and confiscated the property of diplomats.

the goals

What is the purpose of these sanctions? Restrictive measures, referred to by the State Department, are introduced under the Civil Rights Act of 1991, which until now has been applied only against North Korea and Syria.

If the first axis of evil under Bush Jr. looked like this: Syria - Iran - Iraq - North Korea, then the second, more large-scale - this is Russia, China, Syria, Iran and North Korea. This is probably the basis - and public opinion is being prepared for this - for attempts to deprive Russia of a place in the UN Security Council.

The second goal is the desire of the US to consolidate the West, split along two lines: the US-EU, and the Old and New Europe. By the way, the British authorities, who recently do not get along with Trump because of migration issues and Brexit, appreciated the statement of the State Department, calling it an "unambiguous message" to Russia.

sanctions are designed to consolidate Democrats and Republicans in Congress and give "an impetus to a bipartisan anti-Russian consensus." And, in the latter, Congress makes it clear that it is he, not Trump, who decides the issues in the country, and tries to get him back to the "right track", from which the US president began to appear at the summit in Helsinki.

The effect

US sanctions will hit as the boomerang across Europe and will not affect the rates of Vladimir Putin in Russia.

Whatever the goals are, a number of Western media and experts have already announced the senselessness and ineffectiveness of sanctions as a mechanisms of influence.

American sanctions designed to force Russia to admit guilt in the poisoning of the Skripal family and to open chemical weapons production facilities for verification will be rejected as insulting. Putin will easily succeed in persuading his fellow citizens that Washington intends to humiliate Russia. It should be expected that his popularity will soar again